Full Circle
by JuneJulySeptember
Summary: Katara vs Azula on the day Sozen's Commit arrives. Prompted and written for pro-bending circuit


**CHAPTER FOUR.** Full Circle

 **Team/Position:** Fire Ferrets, Airbender

 **Word Count:** 817

 **Prompts:** One left shoe, Someone has to throw up, ends with the sentence "With his  
last breath, he/she said one word - 'Mine'"

 **Bonus point:** element talked about (air)

"I'd really rather our family physician look after little ZuZu if you don't mind!"

Torrents of fire washed over the entire southern end of the courtyard. There was so much power flowing through her. It was impossible for Azula to imagine a more auspicious day for her to ascend the throne. Her throne.

But this little interfering peasant had to be taken care of first.

* * *

Katara threw herself forward once again as fire rained down from what felt like all directions. She created a protective bubble of water to keep the bulk of the flames from charring her like a sea-lion but the heat was drowning her more surely than a flood.

Sweat was running off her in streams and Katara was starting to feel dizzy. As another blast rocketed around her, she sucked in air and made a mad dash away from a fiery death, sending icy projectiles back the way she'd come, attempting what she knew was futile retaliation.

But the slope suddenly changed beneath her and she stumbled to her knees, cool air and the smell of clean water wafting up to her through an open grate. Without warning, her stomach clenched sickeningly and Katara heaved as Azula's fire swirled threateningly close.

 _It's no good_ , she thought, wiping a hand across her mouth _, I have to do something different_. Memories from her past swirled around in her head, too quickly to hold.

" _There's no clever solution, no trickety-trick that's gonna move that boulder_..."

An imposing owl loomed over her. " _You're waterbending won't work on me_."

Sokka's master's voice. " _You solve problems in a very unique way_."

Katara stood abruptly as the fire dissipated, leaning into the pillar at her back. If she was going to win, she had to do something different. She had to be clever and nimble like Aang, improvise like Sokka, and—there! Chains on the wall.

Maybe she couldn't beat Azula under the light of the Comet, but she could contain her.

* * *

Azula closed in leisurely, her cat-like grace, confidence, and apathetic cruelty in jarring contrast to her erratic and maniacal laughter.

It was silly, really. They all ran from her.

And the one person who didn't was lying on the ground twitching, smoking, and hopefully breathing his last.

Why did they even bother?

Azula stumbled slightly, then she looked down with a hiss. It seemed one shoe had lost most of its sole as she'd been dueling. What shoddy workmanship! Snarling in disgust, she wrenched the abhorrent article off and threw it in Zuko's general vicinity, giggling suddenly when the shoe rolled near his head.

Maybe if she cut off Zuko's head, it would roll around like that, too.

But first, the peasant.

Azula lurched to the first few pillars gazing critically through the shade. The dirty little waterbender was hiding, no doubt.

Movement to the right caught Azula's eye, and the blue eyed girl stepped boldly out to meet her, her stance steady and composed.

The audacity of this second-rate bender!

"There you are, you filthy peasant!"

* * *

Katara's eyes narrowed fractionally as Azula stepped forward. Once, she had thought Zuko was her polar opposite. But now, standing opposed to the princess of fire, Katara knew her true enemy.

The two bending power-houses attacked simultaneously, Katara with five thin blades of water and Azula with a particularly direct blazing assault.

Dodging to the right, Katara rolled on the ground, maneuvering the fight so the princess was closer to the grating. Time seemed to stall, the two battling women more graceful than dancers as they exchanged blows. Until they were right over the grating.

Katara's surprise was almost as great as Azula's when, suspended in a prison of ice, they both realized who had won. Breathing out slowly, Katara moved and melted the water in such a way that she could bind Azula's hands to the grating below. The other bender struggled slightly, but surrounded as they were by Katara's element, Azula was effectively, incredulously, subdued.

Giving the restraints one final yank, Katara raced back to Zuko's side, praying she wasn't too late.

Skidding to a halt and kneeling down, Katara gingerly rolled the unconscious prince over, careful of the festering wound now dominating his chest.

Glancing around to make sure there were no immediate threats, Katara pulled the water from her pouch, allowing it to spread over his torso before closing her eyes, focusing all her impressive amounts of love, compassion and hope into that single act of healing.

* * *

Impossible! The idea that some little retch could not only match her skills in bending but outthink her as well was simply laughable.

So why was she crying?

Fire spewed forth from her mouth as Azula doubled over, laughing as the tears came down.

"It was all mine. The power, the throne, everything was mine for the taking."

She choked on her own sobs, as with her last breath, she said one word, "Mine."


End file.
